It won't make a difference either way. After your computer has run for a while your water will reach a temperature equilibrium, so the same amount of heat will be removed no matter what order your loop is. Just plumb it however makes sense and minimizes the length of tubing.

I used to be absolutely OCD about keeping a rad before each component, but I gave that up our of necessity on my last build, and am glad I did. The only rule I still always follow is keeping the reservoir right before the pump.

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Couldn't really agree more with this. It just so happens with my case I was able to get the rads before the components without too much fuss or extra tubing. My suggestion is once the case is there and you have all the parts, sort of play around with mounting and routing ideas prior to making any tubing cuts. One thing that I find really can simplify a loops look is 45* and 90* fittings before the barbs. This allows you to direct the tubing at things rather than large round bends to make it to the barbs that stick straight off of the components of the loop.

You live and learn. Just built my second w/c pc and even though i bought some angled connectors the tubing was twisted due to torsion. I would heartily recommend buying rotary fittings as these allow the tubes to 'spin' making tube management so much easier. I have three 90 degree elbows (two off pump and one off rad) with rotary fittings and they make things super.

Unfortunately my 30 degree angles off my cpu block are fixed and after remounting it I have (a) excess tubing and (b) torsion in the tubing.

Couldn't really agree more with this. It just so happens with my case I was able to get the rads before the components without too much fuss or extra tubing. My suggestion is once the case is there and you have all the parts, sort of play around with mounting and routing ideas prior to making any tubing cuts. One thing that I find really can simplify a loops look is 45* and 90* fittings before the barbs. This allows you to direct the tubing at things rather than large round bends to make it to the barbs that stick straight off of the components of the loop.

Hey guys, I have my 3930 running happily under water, maxing at mid 40's (one core at high 40's, mid 50's). With my D5 vario and 120.4 SR1 would it be fine and dandy to add my proposed next buy (HD 7970) into that loop?

I figure I don't need any more cooling power for just one card , seeing as I have the quad already. It's unlikely I'll o/c the gpu much and my 3930 stays at stock (well, auto's to 3.8).

I have the parts in my sig (CPU and 2x6970's) cooled with one 120x4 rad and one 120x1 rad just fine. I probably don't need the second rad, but I am mostly using it for a 180-degree turn in the tubing. Of course, the extra little bit of cooling it provides probably helps, too.

I haven't posted here in a bit, but got a question. After my tax return gets back I am going to have a local machine shop make one of these out of copper.

My loop is currently 25% Dex-Cool 75% water and has been tested to -10C circulating hot side would be pure distilled water while the cold side would be the dex-cool obviously. I have a MCR420, MCR320 and MCR220 stack plumbed into the loop with multiple 320/220's sitting on the shelf depending on how this goes. Circulation provided by a D5 (@D4) and D4. That would be for the TEC side obviously the CPU/GPU side will be a maze 4 GPU and I can't remember what the hell I have on the CPU doesn't matter. Got a MCP350+top for the pump. Fans on the rads are Delta 250+ CFM 120x32mm in a push/pull.

What should I shoot for wattage wise on the TEC's that block will fit 9 40x40mm TEC's. I have the powersupplies to run pretty much whatever (a big pyramid and multiple meanwells). I don't pay for electricity so I don't really care about the power draw. I am shooting for very cold and I am going to get this to be an all in case minus the powersupplies just for giggles.

I have a question about my loop. I know that copper and aluminum together will cause galvanic corrosion, and I have an aluminum radiator and copper blocks. But in order for galvanic corrosion to occur, the copper and aluminum parts would have to have electrical connection between them, right?

My aluminum radiator is mounted to my wood desk and is electrically isolated from the computer and the copper blocks, save for the minor conductivity of the water in the coolant tubing. Do I need to worry about corrosion occurring over any reasonable period of time?

Yes, but galvanic corrosion can only occur if the metals can exchange electrons, right? And if the aluminum is electrically isolated, as it is being attached to a wood desk, then it can't exchange electrons with the copper blocks and therefore can't corrode. Am I missing something important?